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The Empire of Førvania was a gathering of enclaves that claimed to be a sovereign state, but was referred to by the outside world as a micronation. Founded on March 10, 2015, in a geography classroom, by Nicholai Fredriksson, it claimed a total of seven enclaves in Victoria, Australia, five of which were in the Yarra Valley, one in Ballarat, and one which was in Hamilton. Førvania declared independence on June 16 of that year, and went on to receive a high status, being ranked 14th in the Most Influential Micronations List. Førvania was a former member of the Nollandish Confederacy, a founding member of the United Australian Micronations, and was formerly a member of the United Micronations that was founded in 2014. Førvania has inspired at least five other mostly short-lived micronations, most of which have immediately declared war on Førvania. It went defunct in December 2016.

Etymology

History

Prehistory

The land in which Førvania's capital is based on was initially owned by the Wurundjeri tribe of Indigenous Australians, who inhabited the area around 30,000 years ago. However, on January 26, 1788, the British Empire claimed much of Australia as the Colony of New South Wales.

In 1835, John Batman founded the city of Melbourne by signing a treaty with the indigenous people of that area. This became the capital city of the colony of Victoria when it was established in 1851. Australia eventually became an independent country in 1901.

Beginnings of a nation

In February 2002, Nicholai Fredriksson[1] was born in a suburb of Melbourne. In July 2009, he moved near the location of what is now Førvania, and noticed two islands based in lakes nearby. There were plenty of ideas thought of, but none of them came to fruition.

In 2012, Fredriksson read about the Principality of Sealand, and was subsequently inspired to begin his own nation, however, no nation was ever officially founded until 2015. That year, Fredriksson went to high school, and made friends with other students including Alec and Nicholas. In a geography lesson held on March 10, 2015, the computer that Fredriksson was using failed to work, so he shared his ideas with others, and officially founded the Empire of Førvania.

2015

Many significant events happened throughout the first few months of Førvania's existence. In March, Samuel was declared as the first Prime Minister, and fended off a challenger in the election held two weeks later, before leaving the country to be replaced by Alec. Alec was removed from the post for throwing wet sand at the Emperor in The Battle of Phillip Island, but replaced the other PM 10 days later.

In August, Emperor Nicholai took a short break from being the Emperor, due to some immense stress. Two people in the Empire took this as the perfect opportunity to start a rebellion including the then-Prime Minister Alec, which led to the Emperor taking back the throne and defeating the rebellion. Later that month, the territory of Holesberg was annexed.

Since September, the Empire has been rather stable, with a state of calm previously unseen in the nation appearing. Minimal notable events occured, but Førvania was admitted to the Nollandish Confederacy, a war with the Moleland Republic that had been going on came to a close shortly after the Skirmish of Quadpap, and the Prime Minister, Kealy, declined to stand for election in 2016, causing the election to be bought forward to November. This election was won by Aaron.

In December 2015, the Emperor announced on the MicroWiki Forum that Førvania was considering adopting an isolationist policy, however, this did not carry through.

2016

In May 2016, Aaron, the Prime Minister, resigned from his role, which caused a month of instability which was finally resolved in June with the appointment of Sir Cameron, MP for the Central Allambi Territory.

On September 7, 2016, Nicholai I abdicated as Emperor, meaning the role was passed to his grandparents, Stephen I & Jean I.

Administrative Divisions

Førvania currently claims eight territories throughout the Australian state of Victoria. All of these territories are self sufficient, but they are organised into burghs, which are in turn organised into provinces. This is largely for purposes of nobility.

Government and Politics

Førvanian politics is based on a constitutional monarchy system. Parliament consists of a Member of Parliament for each State, as well as the Monarch. One of the MPs is chosen to be the Prime Minister.
The Members of Parliament are elected every November, using a preferential voting system, by the citizens of their State and the affiliated Territories. In the next February, the entire nation votes amongst the MPs for who will be the Prime Minister.
All Acts are voted upon by the Members of Parliament and the Monarch. In the event of a tie, 2-2, the Monarch's vote is the deciding one.

Nations recognised by Førvania

Diplomatic relations

On May 22, 2016, the parliament of Førvania passed an act adopting an isolationist policy, which led to the withdrawal of Førvania from diplomatic relations with other states. At the time of this policy, Førvania had relations with the following countries:

Førvanian relations with Australia

Førvania naturally has a strong bond with Australia, as all of its citizens were previously Australians. However, some Australians have been rather antagonistic towards Førvania, at one point tearing down a sign on the Quadpap-Australia border.[4]

Military

Førvania has no defence force, as an act to pass it was defeated in Parliament. However, in times of emergency, Emperor Nicholai will defend the nation.

Geography and Climate

Førvania has a temperate oceanic climate, like the rest of southeast mainland Australia. The nearest weather station maintained by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology is on Coldstream Airfield.

The flag of the Empire of Førvania is a yellow Nordic Cross on a red background. However, in what is believed to be a unique feature, the two sections to the left of the cross are sky blue. The original version of the flag was red, with a yellow cross, and featured an orange eagle on it. This was changed in August 2015 due to it being made with an online flag generator, which other members of the community tended to regard this as an unprofessional approach.

Cuisine

The cuisine of Førvania is rather simple. It varies, but it is mostly based on the cuisine of Australia. At the embassy to Australia, breakfast is typically cereal, whereas lunch is usually a sandwich. Dinner tends to fall into several categories, with the staples being pasta, peas, corn, and fish in various forms.

Arts

The arts have not made much progress as part of Førvania. However, there are several young writers amongst the nation.

National traditions

Sport

Media

Førvania has only one major form of media: a YouTube channel. A new newspaper, the Imperial Chronicle, is in the pipeline.